The 12th Quarter Quell
by Kfreak
Summary: A fanfic about the 12th Quarter Quell Originally the 5th, but it was already taken here, lol
1. Chapter 1

The sun's high up in the sky, gleaming down among us, reflecting off the river nearby. Life here in District 7's been the same. Cut down tree, saw them into lumber, and ship them everywhere. It was here where the very first victor of the first Hunger Games, Jake Kenewick, was born. A golden statue stands in the middle of the park to honor him and his sacrifices he made in the Games.

I wish I was around to see him in action. My great great grandpa was able to watch him in the Games. He told us stories about his strategies within the Games, and how he was loved by District 12, for helping Brielle until it was just the three of them. Rover, Brielle, and Jake, the top three tributes in those Games. I've heard that the final event of the first Hunger Games were the resurrections of the tributes, armed with the weapons that they specialized. That must have been crazy.

I head over to the local store to pick up some things for dinner. The store was small, but yet it was always crowded with the eager customers to buy the finest products. Many of them line up to buy the famous 'Mockingjay Pins' that were worn by Katniss Everdeen in the 74th and the 75th Hunger Games.

I begin walking into the wheat aisle, when Sage, the store's daughter, greets me. "Hey Ryland, what's up?" she asks me, eager for a respond.

"I'm fine, just picking up the flour for dinner, how about you?"

"Same here. Just a little worried."

"Why?"

"The reaping is tomorrow, and I'm worried that my little brother might be chosen." she says quietly.

I give her a look, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, I know that they've changed the age limit to 6-36 for the Quarter Quell, but I can assure you that Evan is not going to be stepping foot into that arena." I reply.

Evan is Sage's little brother. He's only six, so he qualifies for this 'Reaping'. Quarter Quells are the worst type of Hunger Games. The Gamemakers are able to change up the rules. In the Second Quarter Quell, they asked for twice as many tributes, which would of brought more entertainment to the Capitol's citizens.

"You sure?" Sage asks, looking at me.

"I promise. Hey, wanna head over to my house for dinner? My mom's making potato chowder with her homemade sweet rolls." I say to her.

Her head nods with a smile on her face, then we buy the bag of flour and head over to my house.

"So, what do you think is going to be different this year, besides the age change?" Sage asks me.

"I dunno, but let's hope they just stick with it and not add anything else to the torture." I reply.

We then stop in our tracks. Jake's statue stands in front of us, holding an ax on his shoulder. "We need another Jake in the Games. Our last two victors was Johanna Mason, but she's not around to tell us about her experience anymore, and that other guy who recently won, but I never remember his name," I turn to Sage.

She looks at me and nods, with a smile. "You're right. Let's hope we finally get a victor this year."

We walk by the golden statue, and make it to my house. It's rather small, filled by my family. The bricks are a bright red due to our cleaning every week, and the door frame is cedar bark, the most common tree here in District 7.

I open the door, letting Sage in, and place the bag of flour on the counter. My mom's in the kitchen, cooking the dinner, while my younger brother and sister are watching some cartoons on the T.V. "Thanks dear," my mom looks over her shoulder, then see's Sage, "Hey Sage, over for dinner tonight?"

She nods, saying "Yes mam, you know how much I love your potato chowder."

My mom laughs abit, then continues cooking, "Thank you, I'll let you guys know when dinner is ready."

"Okay," we reply back, then head for my room. The hallway was narrow, and at the very end is my room. I open the door and begin to 'clean' it up a bit. "Ryland, how long has it been this messy?" Sage asks.

"Since the last time you were over, so about a month ago," I reply. I place my clothes into the basket next to my room, and move my shoes into my closet. I gently take off my shoes and sit on the edge of my bed.

Sage sits next to me, holding a wooden mockingjay that I've carved out a few weeks ago. "You made this?"

I nod, "Yes, I got bored." I reply, "You can have it if you want."

"Really? Thanks Ryland," she says, rubbing her fingers along the wings of the wooden bird. It's covered in the finest paint you can find anywhere in Panem, followed by dark, black soft pebbles for the eyes.

A few minutes pass by, and my mom calls us for dinner. The table is covered with the soup, sweet rolls, and the dishes. I sit at the edge of the table, while Sage sits by me on the side. I fill up my bowl with the chunky potato chowder, and sprinkle some cheese that we get from District 10.

I bless my mouth with a spoonful of the chowder, which makes my taste buds go wild over the succulent flavor of the potato chowder. I drink some of the water, and finish off my bowl.

Sage follows, pushing her bowl toward the middle of the table. "That was the best batch of potato chowder you've ever made, thanks Mrs. Clemons," she says, getting up from the chair. "Well, I better head off. My mom want's to make sure the store's secure for the 'Reaping' in a couple days," she says softly, then heads out.

"Anything wrong with her?" My mom asks me, turning my way.

"She's just worried that her younger brother will be selected this year."

"But the age limit is 12-18, at least I thought," my younger sister, Penni, who's 10, says.

"Yeah, but this year they changed the limit to 6-36 because of the Quarter Quell," I reply back to her.

My younger brother, Paxton, looks up. He's the youngest of us, only 7 years old. "Will that mean I might be chosen for the Games this year?" he asks.

"No Paxton, they'll most likely pick me," Penni says.

"Listen up, none of you guys are going to take a step into that arena, got it?" I tell them, which gets their attention. They give a slight nod, and continue to finish eating their potato chowder, "I'll make sure we don't lose another brother or sister..."

My mom places a hand on my shoulder, "Ryland, it's not your fault that Kian is gone..."

"Yes it is. I could of volunteered for him last year, but I was too scared to even look up once they called his name," I reply softly.

Kian was the second oldest, after me. He was 14 when he got selected as the tribute for the 124th Hunger Games. He made it pretty far, in fact, was in the top five. He died from the tracker jackers, which were unavoidable.

I begin to stand up from my seat, and head for my room. "I'll be in my room if anyone needs me..."

I close the door behind me and flop onto my bed. The Reaping is tomorrow, and there's no way of knowing who will be chosen, or how. "I'm sorry, Kian," I say softly to myself, letting out a sigh, then trying to get some sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day comes too quickly. It's the reapings, and everybody will be stressing out, hoping that they won't be chosen. My little brother and sister are rushing to get ready, while I'm trying to do the simple task of getting off my bed.

After taking a few minutes to get ready, I head down stairs, where Paxton is sitting by the couch, too scared to go. I walk over to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong, Paxton?"

"I don't want to go, Rye, I don't want to be chosen," he replies, tears forming in his eyes.

"I held him close to me. "They're not going to choose you for the reapings. It's your first year, so you're name is only in there once. Besides, I doubt a seven-year-old would be chosen as tribute for the Hunger Games." I assure him.

He looks up at me, wiping his tears away, "You sure?"

"I'm positive," I reply back to him, patting his back.

Penni walks up to us. "Rye, are you going to get into your nice clothes?"

"Why would I? To celebrate the tributes that have been chosen? I don't think so," I say to her, watching as she shrugs.

The Justice Building's whistle sounded, and we looked at each other. Paxton hides his face in my chest. "It'll be alright, trust me," I say to him, rubbing his back.

My mom walks into the room, rushing abit. "Come on, before we are late," she says, rushing us out the door.

The streets are crowded with people flocking over to the Justice Building. Two large towers are positioned next to the stage for the lighting, while a lone podium stands in the middle of the stage, accompanied by two large glass spheres with the names of the district. Being since the age limit changed to 6-36 for the Quarter Quell, it's even more full. In fact, some of the names seems to be slipping out from the top.

We walk toward the center, get signed in, and head for the middle of the plaza. Everyone waits eagerly, hoping they are not chosen.

Then a lady walks out to the podium, a Capitol citizen. Her hair is a deep purple, which is in a bun at the top of her head. She wears a golden dress, covered in jewels while her eye lashes are dotted with gold rhinestones, not to mention her extremely white skin, but I've seen worst.

She walks up to the microphone, then begins to speak. "Welcome, one and all, to this year's reapings. As you are well aware, the age limit changed due to the Quarter Quell."

I look over, and see Sage. She gives me a look, which probably means if I can see Evan. I give her a nod, and she nods back.

"Due to the change of the age limit, why don't we change up the order, shall we? That'll cheer things up a bit," the lady says, even though it doesn't cheer us up. "Well then, gentlemen first."

She walks over to the boy's names in here very high heels. Her hand floats over the top of the names, then takes a dive into the pool of paper, swishing it around until she found the paper she was looking for. She smiles, and heads back to the microphone. Our hearts begin to beat hard into our chest as she slowly opens the paper, before reading the name.

Paxton Clemons.

What? No, she can't be serious. She patiently watches as my own little brother walks up to the stage. Before I knew it, I step out of line, making past the Peacekeepers. "I volunteer!," I holler to the lady.

Paxton looks back at me, then runs to me, holding me tightly. "Paxton, go to mom," I say to him.

"No, I don't want you to go, Rye."

"Paxton, listen to me, you've got to go to mom. Everything will be alright, I promise. Have I ever broken a promise?"

Paxton shakes his head softly, tears flowing like rivers from his eyes. Sage walks over, and picks up Paxton. "Come on Paxton, let's go see mommy."

"RYE!" Paxton screams back at me, then watched as I make my way up the stage. My hands are shaking in fear, my heart feels like it's going to stop at any moment.

The lady walks me over to the microphone. "Well, what's your name, my dear boy?"

"Ryland Clemons," I muttered into the microphone.

"Oh, and that must be your little brother, is that right?"

I nod to her question, and she pats me on the back, before walking over to the girl's names. She shoots her hand into the glass sphere, before pulling up a name. She walks over to the microphone, and begins to unravel the paper.

Penelope Clemons.

My heart stops. I grab my chest, holding it tightly. Not my own sister. I look down, to see her slowly making her way to the stage, before someone stops her. "I volunteer for her," a voice rings out. It was a girl, who's around my age. She steps forth, and takes her place on the stage.

The Capitol lady begins to talk into the microphone, "And what's your name?"

"Linnea Berwick," Linnea says into the microphone.

The lady smiles, "Our tributes, Ryland Clemons and Linnea Berwick." She, following a few Peacekeepers, leads us into the Justice Building. I turn to Linnea, and mutter a thank you. She nods, and looks forward.

We are place in separate rooms. The first visitors were my mom, Paxton, and Penni. Paxton runs up to me, and hugs me tightly. "It'll be alright Paxton, trust me."

"Please win Rye. I want you to come home," he replies.

I nod, then Penni walks up to me. "Please tell that one girl 'thank you' for me," she says in a soft voice. I nod to her, then stand up, hugging my mom.

"Be safe, honey," she says to me, rubbing my back. "I will, mom," I say, before they are escorted out of the room. My last visitor is Sage.

"You're alright," she asks me.

"I'm fine."

She nods, then hugs me. "Try to win, for District 7," she says.

"I will," I reply back to her, "Promise me you'll visit my house to keep them company."

Sage nods, then is escorted out of the room. A few Peacekeepers leads me out of my room, and then escorts me over to the train system.

The Capitol lady was waiting over at the station, with Linnea and a man. "Nice for you to join us, Ryland," the lady says. The man walks up to me, and offers me a hand. "Good morning to you sir, my name's Matthias," he says. He's a tan man, with a muscular structure. He was crowned District 7's victor at the 292th Games at the age of 13, you know, the victor that I always keep forgetting about, but no one barely hears from him ever since. I look down, and he's wearing the sliders that Jake Kenewick made famous during the first Hunger Games by hiding medicine in there so no one else would see, which was sent by his stylist Hermia.

I shake his hand, then let go. "Alright Kari, let's get them on the train," Matthias says, walking us into the train. He sits us down at the couches, then takes a seat himself, sliding off his sliders and kicking his feet up on the coffee table. "Well, looks like we might actually have a victor this year. You guys seem promising," he says.

Kari looks over at Matthias, "Don't you say that every year to them?"

Matthias lights up a cigarette. "Yes, but I know this time we will have a victor," he replies to Kari, then turns to us. "Now listen up, youngsters."

Linnea looks to Matthias, "We're only four years younger than you..."

"Oh, so we have a little miss attitude here? You know, you need to work on your likability skills here young missy," Matthias says to Linnea, who's glaring at him, "Well then, you know the drill: 26 tributes go into the arena, and only one comes out," Matthias says.

Both Linnea and I nod. Matthias nods, then gets up from his seat. "Wait, that's all you're going to say?" Linnea asks him.

"What else is there to say? 25 of you will die."

"How about advice on how to live or even to make shelter, something that will actually help us?"

"Ok, here's my advice, don't get killed. There are some buff 24 year old guys who got selected, so try to go for the younger kids, get what I'm saying?" Matthias says to Linnea, who's giving him the death-glare. He slides his sliders on and heads for the smoking car. "Hey, Ryland, want to come along? Thought you might want to have a break from her. After all, you'll be in the same arena with her."

"You have got to be kidding!" Linnea says to him.

I look up to him, not knowing what to do. Should I go with, or stay here? "Uh, sure. I'll come along," I reply back to him, following him into the car.

The car is empty, except for us. It's a gleaming silver with blue furniture covering the floor. Several couches were placed in the center of the cart, with small tables at each end of them. The train nears the border of District 7, which could be told by the receding of the treeline.

Matthias walks over to a nearby window. He leans up against the wall, glancing out at the scenery of the land before him. "So, Ryland, looks like you volunteered for your brother, right?"

I nod, looking out the window, seeing the world rush pass the train, knowing this might be my last time seeing District 7. "Yeah," I reply.

"And what about Linnea. She volunteered for your sister?"

"Yeah..."

He releases some smoke from his mouth, then begins to speak. "Do you have a plan for the Games?"

"Plan?"

"You've got to have one. Remember our first victor?" Matthias asks me, holding the cigarette in his mouth, "He won by having a plan, which was mainly to keep Jade and Brielle alive."

"But I don't know how that kept him alive in the arena. Besides, he was lucky because the un-dead tributes pulled Rover into the volcano instead of him," I say to him, noticing him walking a bit further down into the car. He flops onto one of the couches, kicking his feet up on one of the tables, smoking his cigarette.

I follow his actions, sitting on the couch across from the table. "That may be true, but his will of keeping his fellow allies is what also kept him alive. You see, he vowed to make sure they make it to the end, even if it means he'll sacrifice his own life. As he witnessed Jade being covered in the lava flow, he becomes determined to keep his vow."

"But I don't understand..."

"You'll get it eventually. Now, let's just lie back and relax. You've got a long week ahead of you. You've got your chariot ride, the training, and the interview," Matthias says.

The interview. The one thing that I'm worried about is the interview. What do I say? How will I be able to pass the interview without pissing off the Capitol? My dad told me about the last time someone pissed off the Capitol, and that someone was Katniss. Apparently she and Peeta tricked the Capitol in letting both of them win by pretending to eat some nightlock berries. They pulled through, but had severe consequences.

I also kick my feet up, then reply back to him. "Well, let's hope the interview goes well."

"Don't worry. The interview was my specialty during the Games," Matthias said with a smile, then got up and sits next to me, wrapping an arm around me. "Trust me, I'll have you become a pro in the interviews. We'll work on how to present ourselves during our free time, what do you say?"


	3. Chapter 3

I give a slight shrug. "Why not? Besides, if it helps me get sponsors."

"No, you'll do fine, but Linnea on the other hand..." Matthias says, before bursting out in laughter. "We might as well as help her out too, but what ever you do, try your best to stay away from the Cornucopia. I don't want you to be caught in the bloodbath, all right?"

"How will we get the supplies? Don't we need weapons to survive?"

"Don't worry about that. I'm sure you'll find something," Matthias says, before looking out the window.

The gleaming, futuristic city of the Capitol comes into view. Many new buildings were placed over the past year, as sky-walks cross over the gleaming city. Large air-crafts carried the citizens over the city, making frequent stops to the tall tower-like stations, waiting as the citizens exits while others enters inside, taking their seat.

I look over to the large lake in the middle, which is dotted in floating mini-cities, that could hold at least 1000 people each. As the train nears the city, I begin to see the streets, which were covered with the hover cars. I've never seen anything like this in my whole life.

"Charming, isn't? To think we didn't have this technology didn't existed 10 years ago, but here we are," Matthias says, "The train won't dock for another 30 minutes. This city's pretty huge, in fact, it's 1000 percent larger than when Jake came to the Capitol more than a century ago, yet his token of the sliders still remains a popular style to this day in Panem."

"How did we discover this technology?" I ask him.

"District 3, who else?" he says with a chuckle, "They're the nerds of Panem, yet we still rely on them for everyday life. If only they can convince the Capitol to have a less creepy sense of style." He pointed to one person out in the crowd, who's cheering for us, "I mean, look at that. Why would you have those long eyelashes? I'd be scared to have my eyes gouged out with those things."

We laugh abit, then we stand up from our seats. Matthias put out his cigarette and walks back into the room with Kari and Linnea. "Well, looks like we're here guys. Ok, first thing's first. We got to get you guys into your stylists for your chariot ride outfits."

Both Linnea and I nod. Pretty soon, the train finally stops, and we step off. We both take a deep breath, before entering into the tribute's building, which added on an extra story for the discovery of District 13. The doors are made of gold and diamond, showing the change of the Capitol with it's technology. In fact, they completely redesigned the whole building. At first, it was a simple rectangular building, standing 12 stories tall. Now, it's a spire-shaped, in which the stories of the building actually twist, making it the most remarkable building here.

We enter into the building. As we enter the building, we watch the levels above us twisting like it's dancing to some sort of music being played by the wind. At the middle of the tower is the elevator. The tube's small and thin, made from glass and gold lining. Four elevator tubes stand into a group of four, making sure the tributes get to their level as soon as possible.

Matthias walks over to one of the elevators and presses the button. The elevator shoots down to us at speed that I thought were impossible for elevators. The golden doors opens, and we walk into the elevator, pressing the 49th button. The building was not only used for us tributes, but also for condominiums year round. The building itself is 55 stories, and the tributes get the top 13 stories, giving the tributes of District 13 the penthouse.

The elevator stops at our floor. The doors slide open and we exit the elevator, watching as it drops back to the bottom. Both Linnea and I walk over to the balcony, watching the city move beneath us. "How do they do it?" Linnea asks, turning my way.

I give a slight shrug, and continue my focus on the city below. The sunlight gleams the the small floating mini-cities in the middle of the big lake. To imagine what the Capitol looked like when our first victor visited must have been way different to what it is now.

"Guys, let's eat before we need to take you to your stylists," Matthias says. We walk back inside to see the table covered in the fanciest types of food that I've ever seen. There's a large pig which stands in the middle of the table, with a couple baskets of bread from all the districts of Panem.

I sit down at my seat, placing some pieces of the pig onto my plate, then adding a couple biscuits beside it. I place a strip of the pig into my mouth, letting it spice up my taste buds.

"So, while we're here, we'll discuss about the major points of getting sponsors and how to get the whole audience to love you. Being since it the Quarter Quell, you'll need to try even harder, being since there are some tributes that are older and stronger," Matthias says, sipping some of his soup from his soup.

"Do you know what are the tributes are yet?" Linnea asks him.

"Not specifically, but I know the oldest of them is 25, while the youngest is 10 I think. You'll see them on your chariot ride tomorrow, but in the mean time, your stylists will be working on your guys' outfits, so we need to get you down there so they can make the correct measurements on you guys," he says, drinking some of his wine. "Ok, in order to grab the attention of the sponsors, you must show them that you are better than the other tributes. You've got 24 other tributes trying to do the same thing, so do your best and be unique. Remember, they may be a vital key to your guys' survival in the arena."

"What about the interviews?" I ask him.

"Ah yes, the interviews. Make sure you guys make yourself seem likable," he says, turning to Linnea, "Don't do anything that will make you seem bitter."

"Why do you look at me?" she asks Matthias.

"Ok, settle down guys. Let's just enjoy our first dinner together. Here, have some salad," Kari says, placing salad onto our plates. Her deep purple hair still sticks in a bun shape.

We take a bite of our salad, then pour some more dressing onto it. I finish off my plate, then I begin to head for my room. An Avox leads me inside, trying her best to show me around without using her voice. She smiles and leaves the room, leaving me alone. I walk over to the closet, which is filled with clothes. I move the clothes around to see several pairs of shoes and even the sliders.

I walk over to the window, watching the building twist as usual. The sun sets behind the mountains, and the lights of the city begins to glow. The lights reflect onto the large lake, the mini-cities glowing with different colored lights. One of then shines a bright green while another one shines a purple and so on. It's a spectacular sight, something that you wouldn't be able to see back in District 7.

I slip off my shoes and try on the sliders, then lie back on the soft bed. There's a knock on my door. "Hey, Ryland. Time to go see your stylist," Kari's voice rings through the door.

Standing up, I walk over to the door, and open it. I follow Matthias and Kari as they take us to our stylists. I press the button, then enter the elevator. The elevator zips us down to the bottom floor, slowing down as we near the bottom. It then slows to a stop, sliding it's golden doors open.

"Well, let's go," Matthias says, stepping out of the elevator. We follow him, then separate to our prep team. Matthias hands me off to a few people. One of them is an average looking lady with her skin dyed a bright purple, with her pink hair in some twisted shape that makes Kari look like a normal person.

Another one is a guy. His skin is normal color, but his clothing is somewhat creepy. It's golden with small, diamond spikes poking out of the clothes. He has orange highlights in his hair. Overall, he's slim, but very tall.

The last one is another lady with a deep blue skin dye. Her fingernails are coated in some liquid gold substance dotted with exotic jewels that is very rare and valuable. Her green hair is in a beehive looking style.

They being to prep me up for my stylist, shaving off the undesirable hair off my arms and legs, and making sure that no blemishes were poking through. Overall, I look like an enlarged girl's boy-doll. Great, just what I needed.

One of them sends me off into a small room. I sit over at the seat that's provided, and look around.

A lady then walks in. She actually looks normal. Her brown hair is down, and she's got blue eyeliner in. "Hello there, Ryland was it? I'm Katrina, and I'll be your stylist for the time being," she says with a soft smile. "So, you know how the tributes of District 7 always dress up as trees?"

I nod my head, and she speaks some more, "Well, being since it's the Quarter Quell, I've decided to change things up abit. Is that alright with you?"

"Of course it is," I reply. Anything to avoid being dressed up as a tree is perfect. Our district never gets sponsors because we always dress up as a tree, which is not really desirable among them.

Katrina smiles and begins to take measurements of my waist, height, and head size. "Ok, that'll be everything. I'll have your outfit ready for tomorrow," she says with a smile.


	4. Chapter 4

She bids me a farewell as I leave the room, allowing her to get started on the outfit design for the chariot ride tomorrow night. The doors gently swing to a close behind me, blocking the view from inside.

I walk into the elevator, pressing the button which leads to my floor. The elevator gently begins to ascend up into the building, watching the floors gently twist below me. The elevator slows to a halt on my floor. The doors slide open, and I walk out, watching the elevator descend.

I walk into the main room, which has a couple couches and chairs. A large T.V. hangs on the wall in the middle. Matthias is sitting in the middle of the couch, watching the T.V. "I'm done," I say to him.

He looks back and smiles, "Oh, good. How's the designing process going?"

"It was good. We're not going to be trees this year," I reply back to him, which makes him laugh abit.

"Oh, good. I was worried there for a second. Come, have a seat," he says, offering me a spot. I nod and walk over to the couch, sitting next to him.

He places an arm around me, focusing his attention to the T.V. "Well, you're just in time to watch the reapings from the other districts," he says, kicking up his feet onto the table. His foot almost knocks the flower pot off the table. "Kari would of killed me if that pot fell," he says.

"Actually, that's an understatement," I reply, also kicking up my feet.

Matthias laughs and gives me a friendly punch on the shoulder. "I like you already. Keep this up and you'll have the whole crowd on their knees, begging for you to win," he says.

"What about Linnea?"

This made Matthias burst out laughing. "She needs work, but hopefully we'll get her to have less attitude," he jokes, placing an ashtray on the table. He notices the sliders I'm wearing and nods, "Look at that, you're already blending with the crowd. Anyways, lets get to the reapings, what do you say?"

I nod and then pay attention to the T.V. It was District 2's reapings. Their Justice Building gleams into the sunlight, gleaming as far as the eye can see. The lady calls out for the girl tribute. Michelle is her name, and she seems to be around 16. Her brown hair flows in the wind, while her tan hand waves to the crowd, who was cheering her on. Up next was the boy's tribute. She calls out his name. Brycee. He makes his way up to the stage, also enduring the crowd. He looks to be around 21, possibly the oldest tribute selected this year. His smile grows, as he speaks out to the crowd, saying how he will be the one to win the games for District 2.

The districts pass on. District 4 got twins Ocarina and Silas, both 19. They both promise their crowd that District 4 will have a victor.

Then come District 7's reapings. Kari walks up to the microphone, selecting the boy tribute. The next scene was me desperately volunteering for my little brother Paxton. Then Linnea volunteers for my sister Penni, which gave me a sense of relief. At least I won't be fighting my own sister like the twins.

Eventually the reapings are over, and the program switches to the everyday news in the Capitol. Matthias looks over to me, his arm still wrapped around me. "Don't let them discourage you. You still have a chance to win."

"I know, but I'm just abit worried about Brycee," I reply to Matthias.

He nods, then lights up a cigarette. He gets up and walks out onto the balcony. The door opens and Kari and Linnea walks in. "Hey Ryland, how was it?" Kari says.

"It's was fine," I reply.

Linnea sits next to me, turning to me. "So, you happy we're not going to be trees this year?"

I nod in reply, "Yeah. I'm pretty sure Matthias was pretty jealous when I told him. Remember his outfit?"

"Who could forget?" Linnea laughs. Matthias walks back in, placing his cigarette on the ashtray. "Hey Matthias."

Matthias looks up at her, then sighs, "Oh god..." he mutters under his breath, then walks over to his room. "I'll be in my room if you need me, Ryland."

Linnea gives me a confused look, "Why does he hate me?"

I gave a shrug, "Probably just jealous about our outfits for the chariot ride," I reply, "I'll go see what's up."

I stand up and make my way to Matthias' room. I open the door and see him on his balcony, smoking another cigarette. I walk up to the balcony, looking down.

Matthias looks down to me and smiles, "Hey there Ryland, needed some time away from the girls?"

"I guess," I reply to him.

"Well, while they're there doing their girly things, whatever they do, we'll just hang out here and do men stuff," he says, handing me a cigarette, lighting it. "Here you are, first step to manhood, or whatever," he says.

I shrug and take the cigarette, examining it and then place the end in my mouth. The smoke overcomes my whole mouth, causing me to cough. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it eventually," Matthias says, continuing to smoke.

After a few minutes, I begin to get use to the cigarette. I breathe out the smoke trapped in my mouth, "So, do you have any idea on what the arena will look like?"

He shakes his head, "Hell if I know, but I did over hear them saying that it's going to be one like no other, so just be careful."

I look down to the city below, which was slowly moving, and place the cigarette back into my mouth, breathing in some of the smoke, "Let's just hope that there aren't any other surprises out there," I reply, letting the smoke out.

"Well, I wouldn't count on it. It's the Capitol, so who knows what they'll put in there," he says, handing me another cigarette as my finished, lighting it, and getting himself one, "But for now, let's just enjoy this night, these cigarettes, and our time together."

I nod, placing the cigarette in my mouth. I begin to think about my family back home. Paxton. I'm wondering how he's doing with this. After all, he was pretty upset when I volunteered for him, but I couldn't let him go into the arena. And Penni. She's probably helping around the house as usual, keeping Paxton calm with my absence. I never thought this day was coming. Me, fighting to the death with 25 other tributes. Well, it's better than having Paxton be selected.

Matthias looks down to me and places a hand on my shoulder. "I know you'll do good, after all, you are Kian's brother."

"Yeah, but he died."

"By the tracker jackers," he corrects me, "If they weren't there, then he might have won. Being since you are his brother, you have a great chance in winning," he says, puffing out smoke.

He walks inside and sits on the bed, then I follow. He brings over an ashtray and sets it between us. "Ok, while we're alone, why don't we get started on the interviews. First things first, make yourself look presentable. You know, the charm, the looks, the kindness. That's what brings the crowd to your feet, begging you to notice them as well. Do this in the chariot rides as well. The crowds and sponsors will love it."

"But how can I appeal them in the chariots? They're not going to hear me talk at all," I ask.

He stands up, then motions me to my feet. "That's why you gotta show them your pride, show them who you are," he says, sliding off his sliders and stands next to me. "You'll be next to each other on the chariots. What you do is to convince them you are ready to fight."

I nod. Matthias sits back on the bed and lies back. I got around the other side, slide off my sliders, and lie back next to him. I smoke my cigarette some more, letting out the smoke.

Matthias looks over to me, holding his cigarette in his hand. "So, are you ready for the Games?"

I shake my head lightly, "Not really."

Kari knocks on the door, informing us that dinner's here. "Ok, We'll be out there in a minute," he says, then gets up. He takes out his little whiskey bottle and takes a shot, then slips on his sliders. "Come on, Ryland," he says. We both put our cigarettes out and walk out.

The table's full of food like from last night. The pig rests on the middle of the table, wearing the same apple in its mouth. I take small strips from the pig, pouring some sauce onto it.

"Ok, I'm sure you guys are well aware that the chariot ride is tomorrow. So make sure you leave a stunning on an imprint on the crown, especially the sponsors," he says, finishing up his food. He stands from his seat and heads for his room. "I'm out for the night. See ya guys later."

A few minutes pass and I finish my plate. Placing the plate in the middle, I stand up and walk over to my room. I let the door shut behind me, then I lie on my bed, slowly forcing my eyes to shut until tomorrow comes.


End file.
